02/01/2000 03:00 PM House HES

         HOUSE HEALTH, EDUCATION AND SOCIAL                                                                                     
            SERVICES STANDING COMMITTEE                                                                                         
                  February 1, 2000                                                                                              
                     3:00 p.m.                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
COMMITTEE CALENDAR                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
STATE INDEPENDENT LIVING COUNCIL                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
TAPES                                                                                                                           
00-6, SIDE A                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
CALL TO ORDER                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
CHAIRMAN FRED DYSON called the House Health, Education and Social                                                               
Services Standing Committee meeting to order at 3:00 p.m.                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
PRESENT                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
Committee members present were Representatives Dyson, Whitaker,                                                                 
Green, Brice, Kemplen and Coghill.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
SUMMARY OF INFORMATION                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
JOHN WOODWARD, Chair, State Independent Living Council, told the                                                                
committee that the investment for independent living is paying                                                                  
dividends in the state.  Eighteen people have been able to leave                                                                
institutional care and many others have been able to stay out of                                                                
nursing homes or hospitals since they can get care either at home                                                               
or in assisted living homes.                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
RUTH L'HOMMEDIEU, Member, State Independent Living Council,                                                                     
Liaison, Governor's committee on Employment and Rehabilitation of                                                               
People with Disabilities, informed the committee her area of                                                                    
interest is in employment of people with disabilities.  There is                                                                
new federal legislation enacted that will remove out-dated rules on                                                             
Medicaid and Medicare and improve health care benefits.  Alaska has                                                             
been acknowledged nationally as having foresight to be the first                                                                
state to pass the Medicaid buy in.  Employment of people with                                                                   
people with disabilities is a major issue.  Given today's job                                                                   
market, people with disabilities still rest at the 70 percent rate                                                              
of unemployment.  People with disabilities want the ability to find                                                             
a job and live independently within their own communities.                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
DAVID JACOBSON, Director, Access Alaska, an independent living                                                                  
center in Fairbanks, talked about basic home accessible                                                                         
modification services available to many people but it is a problem                                                              
getting these services into rural and remote areas that allow                                                                   
people to go to work and live safely in their communities.  He                                                                  
urged the committee to support these services through the capital                                                               
budgets for AHFC [Alaska Housing Finance Corporation], Mental                                                                   
Health Trust Commission, Division of Vocational Rehabilitation                                                                  
which will all have line items for home accessibility                                                                           
modifications.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
LINDA BJORGE runs an assisted living home in Wrangell and urged the                                                             
committee to support raising the reimbursement rate.  Caregivers                                                                
can't stay home from work to care for people for $31 per day.                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
PATRICK REINHART, Executive Director, State Independent Living                                                                  
Council, commented that they are pleased the state is going in the                                                              
right direction in these areas.  He urged the committee to support                                                              
a self-directed consumer-run personal attendant program where the                                                               
consumer trains the attendant to his/her individual needs.  There                                                               
is a severe shortage of personal care attendants especially in                                                                  
rural and remote areas.  He also answered questions asked by                                                                    
committee members.                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
JERIE BEST, Member, State Independent Living Council, commented on                                                              
the successes on behalf of the State Independent Living Council                                                                 
(SILC) but brought up that the transportation issue has been a                                                                  
failure.  There is money out there to buy vans but not to operate                                                               
and maintain the vans.  She suggested that the Long-term Care Task                                                              
Force add transportation to their list of issues to brainstorm.                                                                 
She also suggested looking at highway funds and fuel taxes to pay                                                               
for these services.  She noted that SILC needs to take some                                                                     
responsibility in the area of transportation also.                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
COMMITTEE ACTION                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
The committee took no action.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
ADJOURNMENT                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
CHAIRMAN DYSON called an at-ease at 3:40 p.m. in order to hear HB
, HB 288 and HB 258.  [The minutes for those bills are found in                                                              
the 3:44 p.m. minutes for the same date.]                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
NOTE:  The meeting was recorded and handwritten log notes were                                                                  
taken.  A copy of the tape and log notes may be obtained by                                                                     
contacting the House Records Office at 129 6th Street, Suite 229,                                                               
Juneau, Alaska  99801-2197, (907) 465-2214, and after adjournment                                                               
of the second session of the Twenty-first Alaska State Legislature                                                              
this information may be obtained by contacting the Legislative                                                                  
Reference Library at 129 6th Street, Suite 102, (907) 465-3808.